Backpack

ABSTRACT

A backpack including a bag, at least one strap and an air pump is disclosed. The at least one strap is connected to the bag for a user to carry the bag and the air pump is disposed on the bag at either one of a position between a user&#39;s back and the bag and a position on the strap which faces the user&#39;s shoulder. The air pump is elastic and deformable and includes a first lateral part and a second lateral part opposite to the first lateral part. An air chamber is formed between the first lateral part and the second lateral part, and the first lateral part is formed with a plurality of air holes communicating with the air chamber and the outside. The pump further includes a plurality of elastic parts located in the air chamber to connect the first lateral part and the second lateral part.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Technical Field

The present invention is generally related to a backpack, and moreparticularly to a backpack having an air pump formed on a strap thereof.

Description of Related Art

A backpack is a tool adapted for carrying objects and is widely acceptedby the public due to its flexibility and convenience. While peoplecarrying the backpack, the weight of the articles in the backpack can beevenly distributed to the user's shoulder through the straps so as toreduce the user's burden. No matter go to work, to school, or to do anoutdoor activity such as mountain climbing or rock climbing, thebackpack has become the best choice for most of the people.

However, the backpack still has some drawbacks. Due to the weight of thebackpack, a user usually would feel stuffy and uncomfortable at his backwhen the user carries a backpack for a long period of time because of along-time carrying of the backpack on his back and shoulder, which oftenforms an unventilated space therebetween. In addition, the moisturegenerated by sweating is easily accumulated on the user's back andshoulder and may even cause adverse reactions to the user's skin, suchas rashes.

In order to solve the aforementioned problems, some manufacturersprovide a plurality of rib-like protrusions on the rear side of thebackpack to be in contact with the user's back in order to volatilizethe sweat on the user's back from the space between the protrusions.However, the effectiveness of such a design is not impressive since theheat dissipation effect is limited by the natural flow of air.

Moreover, even though the weight of the backpack could be distributed tothe user's body through the straps, the backpack still applies apressure to the shoulder and the back of the user intermittently andrepeatedly with the action of the user's limb when the user moves, whichmay lead to a pain in the user's shoulder and back over a long period oftime.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide abackpack with an air pump which can provide airflow to the user's backto eliminate sweating and provide a buffer region between the user'sshoulder and the strap so as to remove the sweat and eliminate thestuffy feeling efficiently.

The present invention provides a backpack including a body and an airpump, wherein the body is adapted to store objects and includes a bagand at least one strap; the at least one strap has two ends connected tothe bag for a user' shoulder to carry the bag; the air pump is disposedon the body at either one of a position between a back of a user and thebag and a position on the at least one strap which faces the user'sshoulder when the user uses the backpack; the air pump is elastic anddeformable and includes a first lateral part and a second lateral partwhich are opposite to each other, and the second lateral part is locatedat either one of a position between the bag and the first lateral partand a position between the first lateral part and the at least onestrap; an air chamber is formed between the first lateral part and thesecond lateral part, and the first lateral part is formed with aplurality of air holes communicating with the air chamber and theoutside; the air pump further includes a plurality of elastic partswhich are located in the air chamber and connects the first lateral partand the second lateral part.

The advantage of the present invention is that the body of the air pumpis elastic and hollow, and has a plurality of air holes, whereby theairflow would be squeezed out from the air pump and flow to the user'sback to take away the sweat when the user uses the backpack and the airpump is pressed by the user's back/shoulder and the bag. Whereby, theuser's back and shoulder could be kept with good ventilation withoutfeeling stuffy even if the user walks and carries the backpack for along time. In addition, the weight of the backpack could be bufferedwith the air pump and would not apply on the user's shoulder directlythrough the straps, whereby the pressure on the user's shoulder could berelieved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will be best understood by referring to thefollowing detailed description of some illustrative embodiments inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a backpack according to a first embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the backpack having an air pump disposedon a shoulder portion thereof according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a partial top view of the air pump of the first embodiment;

FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of the air pump as viewed along line2A-2A of FIG. 3;

FIG. 3B is a schematic view showing a direction of the generated airflowafter the air pump of the first embodiment is being pressed;

FIG. 3C is a schematic view showing a direction of the generated airflowwhen the air pump of the first embodiment is restored to an initialstate;

FIG. 4 is a partial top view of an air pump of a second embodimentaccording to the present invention;

FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view of the air pump as viewed along line3A-3A of FIG. 4;

FIG. 4B is a schematic view showing a direction of the generated airflowafter the air pump of the second embodiment is being pressed;

FIG. 4C is a schematic view showing a direction of the generated airflowwhen the air pump of the second embodiment is restored to an initialstate;

FIG. 5 is a partial top view of an air pump of a third embodimentaccording to the present invention;

FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view of the air pump as viewed along line4A-4A of FIG. 5;

FIG. 5B is a schematic view showing a direction of the generated airflowafter the air pump of the third embodiment is being pressed;

FIG. 5C is a schematic view showing a direction of the generated airflowwhen the air pump of the third embodiment is restored to an initialstate;

FIG. 6 is a partial top view of an air pump of a fourth embodimentaccording to the present invention;

FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view of the air pump as viewed along line5A-5A of FIG. 6;

FIG. 6B is a schematic view showing a direction of the generated airflowafter the air pump of the fourth embodiment is being pressed; and

FIG. 6C is a schematic view showing a direction of the generated airflowwhen the air pump of the fourth embodiment is restored to an initialstate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following illustrative embodiments and drawings are provided toillustrate the disclosure of the present invention, these and otheradvantages and effects can be clearly understood by persons skilled inthe art after reading the disclosure of this specification. Referring toFIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a backpack 100 of a first embodiment according to thepresent invention includes a body and an air pump 10, wherein the bodyincludes a bag 1 and at least one strap 2; the bag 1 is adapted to storeobjects and the air pump 10 is detachably attached to the backpack 100,and is preferably attached to a position corresponding to a user'sshoulder and back. In the current embodiment, the backpack 100 includestwo straps 2. Two ends of each of the straps 2 are respectivelyconnected to two opposite ends on a rear side 1 a of the bag 1 and areadapted for the user to carry the bag 1 with his shoulders, wherein therear side 1 a faces the user's back when the user carries the bag 1. Inanother embodiment, the backpack 100 could be a crossbody backpack or ashoulder bag which includes a single strap.

The bag 1 and the strap 2 both include at least one breathable bag 1 bfor placing the air pump 10 such that the air pumps 10 could berespectively disposed on the rear side 1 a of the bag 1 and on one sideof the strap 2 corresponding to the user's shoulder in a detachablemanner so that the air pumps 10 are located between the user's back andthe bag 1 and between the strap 2 and the user's shoulder when the usercarries the backpack 100. In the current embodiment, the bag 1 includesthree breathable bags 1 b for placing three air pumps 10 and each strap2 includes one breathable bag 2 a for placing one air pump 10, however,this is not a limitation of the present invention. The bag 1 couldinclude only one breathable bag 1 b, or more than three breathable bags1 b, and the two straps 2 could include more breathable bags 1 b forplacing more air pumps 10. In addition, shapes of each of the air pumps10 and each of the air breathable bags 1 b, 2 a could be adjusteddepending on the user's requirements.

The breathable bag 1 b on the bag 1 includes a zipper, a clip-chain oran elastic strip (not shown) etc. on a rim of its opening so as to closeits opening. The breathable bag 2 a on the strap 2 includes an elasticstrip (not shown) on a rim of its opening to limit a size of the openingand prevent the air pump 10 from falling out, however, this is not alimitation of the present invention. In other applications, the openingof the breathable bag 2 a could be sealed with other structures such asa zipper or a clip-chain.

Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 3A, the air pump 10 is made of a plasticmaterial which could be pressed to deform, such as a thermoplasticelastomer (TPE), silica gel, rubber, etc., however, this is not alimitation of the present invention. The air pump 10 is adapted to forma buffer region and a ventilation zone between the shoulder of the userand the strap 2, and between the user's back and the rear side 1 a ofthe bag 1. In the embodiment, the air pump 10 is substantially flat inshape (as shown in FIG. 2), however, this is not a limitation of thepresent invention.

In the current embodiment, the air pump 10 includes a first part 12 anda second part 14. Wherein, the first part 12 has a first lateral part 12a and the second part 14 has a second lateral part 14 a; the first part12 and the second part 14 respectively include a plurality of elasticunits 12 b, 14 b, each of which has a short columnar shape; each elasticunit 12 b of the first part 12 is corresponding to one elastic unit 14 bof the second part 14, and both of the two are disposed on the sameaxial line. When the first part 12 and the second part 14 are alignedand joined to each other, the elastic units 12 b, 14 b on the same axialline would be joined to each other to form elastic members 16 such thatan air chamber S1 is formed between the first part 12 and the secondpart 14. That is, the elastic members 16 are located in the air chamberS1 and two ends of each elastic member 16 are respectively connected tothe first lateral part 12 a and the second lateral part 14 a. It isworth mentioning that the two ends of each elastic member 16 have adiameter D larger than a diameter d of a central portion thereof. Withsuch a design, a deformation degree and a restoring speed of the elasticmember 16 could be increased. In addition, the elastic units 12 b, 14 bcould be formed with a solid structure or a hollow structure; in thecurrent embodiment, a solid structure is utilized.

Furthermore, the first lateral part 12 a has a plurality of air holes 18communicating with the air chamber S1 and the outside of the air pump10. When the first lateral part 12 a and the second lateral part 14 aare pressed by an external force to be close to each other, the air inthe air chamber S1 would flow to the outside of the air pump 10 throughthe plurality of air holes 18. On the other hand, when the externalforce is removed, the first lateral part 12 a and second lateral part 14a would be restored to their initial positions, and the air would flowinto the air pump 10 through the plurality of air holes 18. Moreover,the air holes 18 are disposed at positions deviated from where theelastic member 16 is located.

The air pump 10 on the bag 1 has its second lateral part 14 a beinglocated between the rear side 1 a of the bag 1 and the first lateralpart 12 a, while the air pump 10 on the strap 2 is inserted into thebreathable bag 2 in a manner that the first lateral part 12 a faces theshoulder of the user, and the second lateral part 14 a is disposedbetween the first lateral part 12 a and the strap 2 such that the airflow from the air holes 18 of the first lateral part 12 a could takeaway the user's sweat. As illustrated in FIG. 3A, when the backpack 100is not carried by the user, the air pump 10 is in an undeformed statewithout being pressed and a distance between the first lateral part 12 aand the second lateral part 14 a is denoted as a first width W1. In thepresent embodiment, the elastic member 16 is also not compressed anddeformed during this time.

Also referring to FIG. 3B, when the backpack 100 is carried by the user,the air pump 10 would be pressed and deformed by the backpack 100 sincethe air pumps 10 are respectively located between the rear side of thebag 1 and the user's back and between the strap 2 and the user'sshoulder, and the weight of the backpack 100, which stores the articles,applies on the user's shoulder through the strap 2, whereby the airchamber S1 of the air pump 10 becomes smaller and the air would besqueezed out from the air chamber S1 through the air holes 18, whereinthe distance between the first lateral part 12 a and the second lateralpart 14 a is denoted as a second width W2 during this time; the secondwidth W2 is smaller than the first width W1. On the other hand,referring to FIG. 3C, which illustrates a state that the bag 1 is not inclose contact with the user's back and the strap 2 is not in closecontact with the shoulder of the user when the backpack 100 is carriedby the user while the user is walking, wherein the user's pace wouldchange during his walking, which causes the undulation of the bag 1. Atthis moment, the elastic member 16 is not compressed and restored to itsinitial state, whereby the air chamber S1 of the air pump 10 wouldquickly return to its original volume and the air would be drawn intothe air chamber S1 through the air holes 18.

According to the first embodiment, a buffer region is respectivelyformed between the user's back and the rear side 1 a of the bag 1 andbetween the user's shoulder and the strap 2 to reduce the pressureapplied to the user's back and shoulder. By pressing the air pumps 10with the user's back or shoulder, a volume of the air chamber S1 wouldbe reduced, and air in the air chamber S1 would flow out from the airchamber S1 through the air holes 18 and blow to the user's back so as toremove sweat from the user's back, whereby the user's back could be keptwith good ventilation and the user will not feel hot because of carryingthe backpack 100. In other embodiments, the first part and the secondpart of the air pump could be formed without the elastic member or couldinclude elastic units which do not respectively have the short columnarshapes, respectively.

In order to prevent the air holes 18 being blocked by the user's backwhich affects the air-venting result of the air pump, an air pump 20 ofa second embodiment according to the present invention is provided. Asillustrated in FIG. 4 and FIG. 4A, the air pump 20 also includes a firstpart 22 and a second part 24, wherein the first part 22 has a firstlateral part 22 a and the second part 24 has a second lateral part 24 a.The air pump 20 of the current embodiment is different from the firstembodiment in that the air pump 20 includes a plurality of recesses 25at a position which is adjacent to the user's body (e.g. the firstlateral part 22 a) and is opposite to the second lateral part 24 a. Eachof the recesses 25 includes one air hole 26, however, this is not alimitation of the present invention. In other embodiments, it is notnecessary to make all of the recesses to be formed with air holes. Thatis, some of the recesses could include air holes, and the others of therecesses could not include air holes.

Referring to FIG. 4B, when the user' back is close to the rear side 1 aof the bag 1 and the first lateral part 22 a is pressed by the user, theair pump 20 would be pressed and deformed by the backpack 100 since theair pump 20 is located between the strap 2 and the user's shoulder, andthe weight of the backpack 100 applies on the user's shoulder throughthe strap 2, whereby the air chamber S2 of the air pump 20 becomessmaller and the air would be squeezed out from the air chamber S2through the air holes 26. In addition, when the air holes 26 are locatedwithin the recesses 25, the air holes 26 would not be blocked by theuser's shoulder due to the air pump 20 is in close contact with acontact portion of the user, i.e., the contact portion is referred tothe user' back when the pump 20 is located on the rear side 1 a of thebag 1, and on the other hand, the contact portion is referred to theuser's shoulder when the air pump 20 is located on the strap 2, whichmay result in a poor ventilation effect, whereby to ensure that theperformance of air intake/exhaust of the air holes 26. Referring to FIG.4C, which illustrates a state that the strap 2 is not in close contactwith the contact portion of the user when the user's pace changes duringhis walking, which causes the undulation of the backpack. At thismoment, the elastic member 28 is not compressed and restored to itsinitial state, whereby the air chamber S2 of the air pump 20 wouldquickly return to its original volume such that the air would be drawninto the air chamber S1 through the air holes 18. In other embodiments,even the air pump which does not include the elastic member also couldrestore to its initial state.

An air pump 30 of a third embodiment according to the present inventionis shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 5A, wherein the air pump 30 is formed byjoining a first part 32 and a second part 34; the first part 32 isformed with a first lateral part 32 a, and the second part 34 is formedwith a second lateral part 34 a. The air pump 30 of the currentembodiment is different from the second embodiment in that the air pump30 includes a plurality of grooves 35 on a position close to the user'sbody (e.g. the first lateral part 32 a), and each groove 35 is adaptedfor communicating two recesses 36.

As illustrated in FIG. 5B, when the user's back is close to the rearside 1 a of the bag 1 and the first lateral part 32 a is pressed by theuser, the air pump 30 would be pressed and deformed by the backpack 100since the weight of the backpack 100 applies on the user's shoulderthrough the strap 2, whereby the air chamber S3 between the firstlateral part 32 a and the second lateral part 34 a becomes smaller andthe air would be squeezed out from the air chamber S3 through the airholes 39. Moreover, the air from the air chamber 35 would be distributedbetween each of the recesses 36 which are communicated with the grooves35, thereby removing the sweat and eliminating the stuffy feelingefficiently. In the current embodiment, the grooves 35 are recessed intoa surface of the air pump 30 toward the air chamber S3 with a depth D1,which is smaller than a depth D2 of each of the recesses 36, whereby theair pump 30 would not have a decreased number of the air chambers S3 dueto forming the recessed grooves 35, which may cause the air pump 30could not achieve an acceptable ventilation performance. Also referringto FIG. 5C, which illustrates a state that the strap 2 is not in closecontact with the shoulder of the user when the user's pace changesduring his walking, which causes the undulation of the backpack. At thismoment, the elastic member 38 is not compressed and restored to itsinitial state, whereby the air chamber S3 of the air pump 30 wouldquickly return to its original volume so as to make the air flow throughthe grooves 35 and the recesses 36 to the air holes 39 and then be drawninto the air chamber S3 through the air holes 39. In other embodiments,even the air pump which does not include the elastic member also couldrestore to its initial state.

An air pump 40 of a fourth embodiment according to the present inventionis shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 6A, wherein the air pump 40 is formed byjoining a first part 42 and a second part 44; the first part 42 isformed with a first lateral part 42 a, and the second part 44 is formedwith a second lateral part 44 a. In addition to the recesses, the airpump 40 of the current embodiment is different from the first embodimentin that the air pump 40 includes a plurality of protrusions 46 on thefirst lateral part 42 a and are opposite to the second lateral part 44a, wherein each of the protrusions 46 is disposed on the same axial linewith a corresponding one of the elastic members 48 and is connected tothe corresponding elastic member 48. Meanwhile, the air holes 49 aredisposed between every two adjacent protrusions 46, and the protrusions46 enable the air to flow through the areas which are not formed withthe protrusions 46. The protrusions 46 also could be adapted to massagethe shoulder of the user. In addition, the air holes 49 are not formedon the protrusions 46. However, in other embodiments, it is notnecessary to make the protrusions and the elastic members to be disposedon the same axial lines. Furthermore, the air pump could be formedwithout the elastic members.

As shown in FIG. 6B, when the user's back is close to the rear side 1 aof the bag 1 and the first lateral part 32 a is pressed by the user, theair pump 40 and the elastic members 48 which have elasticity would bepressed and deformed by the backpack 100 since the weight of thebackpack 100 applies on the user's shoulder through the strap 2, wherebythe air chamber S4 between the first lateral part 42 a and the secondlateral part 44 a becomes smaller and the air would be squeezed out fromthe air chamber S4 through the air holes 49 on the first lateral part 42a. At this moment, the air not only flows into the air holes 49 but alsois distributed to the areas which are not formed with the protrusions46. Also referring to FIG. 6C, which illustrates a state that the airpump 40 is not in close contact with the contact portion of the userwhen the user's pace changes during his walking, which causes theundulation of the backpack. At this moment, the elastic member 48 is notcompressed and restored to its initial state, whereby the air chamber S4of the air pump 40 would quickly return to its original volume so as todraw the air flow into the air chamber S4 through the air holes 49. Inother embodiments, even the air pump which does not include the elasticmember also could restore to its initial state.

The first part and the second part of the above embodiments arerespectively formed by injection molding, however, this is not alimitation of the present invention. In other embodiments, the air pumpalso could be integrally formed as a monolithic unit, such as beingformed by 3D printing.

The combination method for the air pump and the bag or the strap is notlimited to utilizing the breathable bag as described above. In order tofacilitate the user to adjust a position of the air pump, in anotherembodiment, a hook side of a Velcro strap is disposed on either one ofthe rear side of the bag and the air pump, and a loop side of the Velcrostrap is disposed on the other such that the hook side and the loop sidecould attach to each other to make the air pump be detachably disposedon the bag.

According to the present invention, the air pump is elastic and hollowand has a plurality of air holes. By placing the air pump between thebackpack and the user, the airflow would be squeezed out from the bodyand flow to the back of the user to take sweat away from the user whenthe contact portion between the user and the air pump moves relative tothe bag, and the user's back and shoulder could be kept with goodventilation without feeling stuffy even if the user walks and carriesthe backpack for a long time.

It must be pointed out that the embodiments described above are onlysome embodiments of the present invention. All equivalent structureswhich employ the concepts disclosed in this specification and theappended claims should fall within the scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A backpack, comprising: a body including a bagand at least one strap, wherein the bad is adapted to store objects; theat least one strap has two ends connected to the bag for a user'sshoulder to carry the bag; and an air pump disposed on the body, whereinthe air pump is located on at least one of a position between a back ofa user and the bag and another position on the at least one strap whichfaces the user's shoulder when the user uses the backpack; the air pumpis elastic and deformable and includes a first lateral part and a secondlateral part which are opposite to each other, and the second lateralpart is located on at least one of a position between the bag and thefirst lateral part and another position between the first lateral partand the at least one strap; an air chamber is formed between the firstlateral part and the second lateral part, and the first lateral part isformed with a plurality of air holes communicating with the air chamberand the outside; the air pump further includes a plurality of elasticparts which are located in the air chamber and connect the first lateralpart and the second lateral part.
 2. The backpack of claim 1, whereinthe first lateral part includes a plurality of recesses which areopposite to the second lateral part, and each of at least part of therecesses has one of the air holes.
 3. The backpack of claim 2, whereinthe first lateral part further includes a plurality of grooves forcommunicating at least two adjacent ones of the recesses.
 4. Thebackpack of claim 3, wherein a depth of each of the recesses is greaterthan a depth of each of the grooves.
 5. The backpack of claim 1, whereintwo ends of each of the elastic parts for connecting to the firstlateral part and the second lateral part have diameters larger than adiameter of a central portion of each of the elastic parts.
 6. Thebackpack of claim 1, wherein the first lateral part has a plurality ofprotrusions opposite to the second lateral part; the air holes aredisposed between two adjacent ones of the protrusions; each of theprotrusions is located on an extended axial line of a corresponding oneof the elastic parts.
 7. The backpack as claimed in claim 1, wherein thepump includes a first part and a second part; the first part has thefirst lateral part, and the second part has the second lateral part; thefirst part and the second part respectively have a plurality of elasticunits which match with each other; corresponding ones of the elasticunits abut against each other to form a corresponding one of the elasticparts after the first part and second part are aligned and joined toeach other.
 8. The backpack of claim 1, wherein the body includes abreathable bag, and the air pump is disposed in the breathable bag. 9.The backpack of claim 1, wherein the air pump is detachably disposed onthe backpack.
 10. The backpack of claim 9, wherein a hook side of aVelcro strap is disposed on either one of the body and the air pump, anda loop side of the Velcro strap is disposed on the other; the hook sideand the loop side attach to each other.